Maximum Ride: Guardian of Bravery
by Max Ride Guardian of Bravery
Summary: Max is murdered by Pitch as soon as he was informed that another Guardian was coming. However, the Man in the Moon brings her back, with new powers and the ability to stand up to anyone. Don't worry if you haven't seen the movie, the story holds explanations. Questions are welcome! Cover made by me! Pairings to be decided. Rated T for character death and torture.
1. Chapter 1: Meeting Pitch

**This is my first fanfiction, since I finally was able to create an idea that I thought wouldn't just go down the sink. I tried to make this detailed as possible. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Plot is mine, characters sure aren't. Max and the flock belong to James Patterson and the Guardians and Pitch are...well...the creator of "Rise of the Guardians"'s **

** Maximum XD**

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Chapter 1: Meeting Pitch

Max POV

I felt prodding in my mind.

_Angel, what are you doing?_

Silence.

_Angel?_

Silence again.

I glanced up from my book. They're sitting, reading their books.

"Hey Max? Would you mind if I went to the market? To get us some supplies? We are running low," Fang glanced up and asked. His eyes flickered. He was hiding something

I brushed it off as normal Fang-ness.

"Sure. Anything special?" I replied.

"Black jacket, thanks," He said, then returned to reading.

"Just anything," Angel glanced at me, gave me a cute smile, and went back to her book.

I ran and took off, the credit card in my pocket. I swooped down at a nearby store and grabbed everything as fast as I could, hoping not to attract any attention.

Pulling a black jacket off the rack for Fang, and a fiery hoodie for myself, I threw everything on the counter and checked out.

I heaved everything up as I flew back to our makeshift campsite. Angel was watching me intently. She smiled again as I put the supplies down and we ran a quick inventory.

"Maaaax I'm hungryyy," Gazzy whined. I groaned and threw the whole package of crackers at him. He grinned and tore it open.

We had a brief dinner, involving Gazzy farting loudly, and me glancing around with my nose pinched in case of any Erasers.

I read my book a couple minutes more. I was at the part where the main character fell from the sky.

"Guys, time to sleep." I said. Nudge yawned as Angel closed her book.

_Love you, Max,_ Angel sent at me. I grinned. _Me too._

I leaned my head back on the tree. Fang grins at me. I shot him a glare and he winced, beginning to laugh.

The tiredness closed in and I drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

"Max! Help! Max! Please!" I hear Angel's shriek. My eyes snap open and I nearly fall out of the tree.

A man, dressed in more black then Fang, (which is saying a lot), held her in a headlock. His eyes were golden yellow, his teeth slightly sharp, his hair slick black and his face dark grey. Gazzy was on the ground with a horse standing on top of him. A black spider held Nudge, her eyes filled with fear. Iggy had a rope around his neck, the black man with it held in his hand. Fang was tied to a tree, a knife preventing him from movement.

"What do you want," I hissed menacingly, and the man flinched slightly.

"Ooh, a little bit…scared, are we?" He grinned.

"Who are you?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"I'm Pitch. Pitch Black. Also known as the Bogeyman, creator of nightmares, master of Fear." He cackles, sending chills down my spine.

"What do you want?"

"I want to kill the Guardians. North, known as Santa, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, and Sandman. But, no worries, I have Jack Frost in my custody now." He hisses. I nearly flinch.

But I remembered. I was Maximum Ride, the fearless and rebellious Avian-American.

"You mean they're real?" I questioned. His eyes widened.

"Oh, you're not a believer? Then you're not under they're protection, are you?" He laughed.

"Let them go." I snarled. He made a mock fearful face. Then he turned serious.

"I will. But they're mine, because…you betrayed them." He stated. They stared at me with pure hatred, and horror branded itself onto my face.

"Max, you never cared, did you? We have our expiration dates. And they're in one hour." Angel hissed. I flinched.

"It's too late now, you traitor." Fang snapped. I gazed at him in horror.

My former flock stepped back. I saw pure intent; meaning Angel had no part in this. Meaning it was of their own accord.

My heart shattered. But I was determined; to protect my flock till the very end, and for them to live their last hour, with or without me.

"Pitch, what do you want in turn for you to release them?" I asked, slightly hesitant.

"I want your death." He said simply, as though it were obvious.

"Then you will have it. Release them first." I snarled.

"You have my word." He let them go. My flock ran into the woods, leaving me behind.

But Fang lingered. He looked at me, and seemed to have thought differently. He began to walk towards me.

Pitch materialized a bow out of thin air. He aimed it at Fang, a sharp, black arrow glinting in the moonlight.

He released the bowstring, and I threw myself forwards, the arrow entering my heart.

The last thing I saw was the moon shining down on me and Pitch's arrow protruding from my chest.

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**Watcha think? Good? Bad? Review please! Or I'll never be able to know if this is good or not. Say, any ideas on how to make a story more popular? I feel like a lot of people ignore me D:**

**Maximum Ride**


	2. Chapter 2: Grief

**Hi everyone! I'm posting a couple chapters at once just so people start reading it, because a lot of new stories do tend to get ignored.  
I also figured out that I can type on the doc manager and not create a million Word documents to write this. Yes! XD**

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Chapter 2: Grief

3rd person POV

Toothiana (Tooth Fairy) buzzed around anxiously, waiting for news from North. As the doors slammed open, both Tooth and Bunny stood up.

"Where's Jack? Any news?" Bunny asked, already impatient.

"Not here. He's gone, as in, disappeared. I can't track him with anything." Santa replied. Tooth glanced and Bunny, and they shared the moment in silence.

___What can we do? Is there nothing we can do to get them back? What if Jack's gone too? What if...What if Pitch has him?_ The horrifying thought struck Tooth like a rock, and she almost stumbled back._  
_

Santa looked at her in concern. Bunny looked down and sighed. _What if we don't get either of them back?_

_Moonlight shimmered in from the icy window. It was comforting, yet urgent, as though something bad were about to happen._

"Tooth, Bunnymund, look!" Santa pointed at the moon. They rushed into the lobby.

The blue crystal was activated, and the fog was clearly to indicate something.

"Another guardian..." Bunny groaned. His thoughts lingered still on Sandman's death.

"Hey, easy there, we need help, and you know it." Tooth scolded him. Bunny scoffed but didn't say any more.

The mist cleared to show a burning fire. Tooth gasped and flew backward a little, Bunny catching her. The fire went out and it was a droplet of water, then shifting into a leaf, then a gust of wind. It turned back into blue ice crystals and formed a girl, her features clear and identified.

"Thanks, Manny." Santa looked up at the moon. The crystal deactivated and went back into the ground.

"Bunny, conduct an on ground search. You should know where everything is, after all those Easter eggs. Tooth, keep a lookout when you go out in field. I'll take care of the teeth for tonight." Santa ordered. They nodded and transported off to their respective locations, each thinking and worrying about where Jack could be.

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The cold was chilling, colder than even Jack could handle. His dark cell reflected in everything he gave out; his snow, his frost, his power. His staff sat in the corner of the room, seen through the tiny window, just out of his reach. It was split in half, hung on the wall. He reached out for it, but his determination bounced back in, the chains on his arms and legs tightening and recoiling, and his hope turning into panic. He took deep breaths, but the fear was too much for him to handle.

A small ray of moonlight shone in from his window. It depicted a girl.  
_She looks really nice,_ Jack thought. The girl had flickers of flame around her, as well as dancing leaves and drops of water He rubbed the thought away at his situation. He thought of Sandman, and how he'd lost his life. His gaze hardened as he thought of himself, stupid enough to be captured by Pitch. He sighed in dismay.

The ray disappeared as Pitch walked into the room, opening his cell door.

"Ah, Jack Frost. Enjoying the view?" Pitch gestured at the tiny window.

"Not really. More like looking at your filth and pitying the fact that it's all you are," Jack retorted.

Pitch struck out lightning fast, his fist driving into Jack's stomach. Jack flew into the wall and slid down slowly.

"Look at you, Jack? Got nothing else to say?" Pitch sneered.

"Not to a piece of filth like you," Jack replied, his voice slightly weaker.

"Well, then I've got something in store for you, Frost," Pitch uncoiled a black whip that materialized out of thin air. He looked at Jack, who was chained and facing towards the wall, and struck.

Jack bit his tongue trying to keep quiet. A long gash now lay across his back. Pitch grinned.

"Surprise, no? What fun would it be," he paused, "without striking a little fear into your heart."

Jack tensed and braced himself for incoming pain.

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**Good? Bad? Review please!**

**Maximum Ride**


	3. Chapter 3: Waking Up

**Thanks for viewing/reviewing guys! It makes me feel so fulfilled to just have one review. :D  
Onto the next chapter!**

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Chapter 3: Waking Up

Max POV

I'd always wondered what death would feel like. Right now, to me, it seems like just endless peacefulness. Endless boring-ness.

I'd always wondered what the flock would do without me. I only know that they'll last for one more hour. Without me, and not wanting me.

Maybe here's the time for new beginnings.

I struggled to open my eyes. It felt like something had sealed them shut, like, super glue or something. Something really hard to get past.

I thrashed again and my hand hit something hard. A small flare of pain shot up my arm. My eyes finally shot open.

I analyzed my situation. I had hit my hand on a tree, my breathing was quick, my palms were sweaty.

In other words, I was scared.

_No, Max, you're never scared, and you know it,_ I thought to myself.

A little voice inside me piped up: _You never know, Max._

"Oh shut up!" I shout, my voice echoing through the trees. The next second, I'm running towards a clearing. Rocks litter the ground, and one just happened to be underfoot. I tripped.

I winced. _Clumsiness is not tolerated in the real world, Max._

It was nighttime. I heard owls hooting in the trees. I looked up. The silvery light of the moon was shining down on me. It seemed to wake the memory inside me.

_Why am I alive_?

The memories of the previous morning came rushing back to me. I clutched my head, trying to keep them out, wanting to forget what had happened. The betrayal of my family, their predetermined deaths.

I cried out as I reopened my eyes. Who was I?

_You're Maximum Ride,_ I heard the Voice say.

_Who are you?_

_I'm the moon._

"Right. Yeah, I totally believe that too."

_Seriously. Remember what Pitch told you_?

_You mean the "Santa and the Easter Bunny are real" thing?_

_Yes. _The moon replied.

Well.

Santa, the Easter bunny, the Tooth fairy, Sandman, Jack Frost, they're real. Okay.

Could my life get any weirder?

"Why am I still alive? I remember clearly that...Pitch...shot me through the heart with an arrow." I asked out loud. No response.

I groaned and punched a tree. A spreading star of fire hit it and it caught fire.

I jumped back and looked at my hand. A small flame was in the palm of my hand. I looked at it closely. It wasn't burning me.

I thought about putting it out. It disappeared.

Rain came pouring down on me. The droplets were distinctly avoiding me, as though I told them to.

_Mutant bird kid, you were saying,_ I thought to myself.

I continued walking forwards, forgetting to look around at my surroundings.

I walked into a broken bed in the middle of the clearing, fell forwards, and a hole in the ground swallowed me up.

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3rd person POV

Jack curled up until he felt like neither the coldness nor the darkness of the cell could touch him. He felt the barest sliver of warmth.

_Maybe its real,_ he thought. Pitch had trapped him in what seemed like an endless nightmare. Well, he was the creator of nightmares. Jack couldn't even pretend he was surprised.

He ran a hand through his snowy white hair, now matted with a couple droplets of blood. He refrained from moving too much. The wounds on his back were just starting to clot and close up.

He looked at the tooth on the ground. It was from his valiant attempt to hit Pitch, and he now had a tooth that he knocked out.

He also hoped that Tooth or Baby Tooth would come to pick it up.

He stared at the broken staff on the ground, now bloodied by his own blood. Pitch had hit him with it. Jack barely had enough strength to look at it, much less fix it.

He looked away as the darkness fell around him like a cloak.

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**So, Max woke up. Hopefully Pitch won't get to her when she gets into his lair. Maybe he will. A little bit of what's going on with Jack at the end. Review for any suggestions on pairings please! **

**Maximum Ride**


	4. Chapter 4: Jack Frost

**Thanks soooo much for reviewing! Special thanks to PseudonymHere, FrostyNerd, and Downwardspiral 12!  
It does occur to me that I'm the first person to publish a Maximum Ride/Rise of the Guardians crossover. I didn't know till I looked it up in the crossovers. **

**Onwards! To the next chapter!**

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****Chapter 4: Jack Frost

Max POV

The darkness faded. I found myself in a barred jail cell. No surprise there. You'd think after being locked up pretty much my entire life would have me used to it.

There was something different about this one, though. I felt the darkness. Not like, there weren't any lights or anything (which there weren't), but it was eerie. It was the feeling I received every single time right before something really bad happened.

I looked around. Two sides of my cell were bars. There was a cold, steel wall behind me. A staff, broken in half, with one end curled into half a circle, hung on the wall. I could just reach it from in my cell.

I heard a groan. I directed my gaze towards where the sound came from. Darkness. I lit one finger up with a small flame.

_Good job, Max. You're finally getting used to using the elements,_ the Voice piped in.

I shifted towards the front of my cell, where the groan had come from. I threw the flame forwards.

There was a boy, about my age, sitting in the far corner of the cell. His hair was snowy white, matted with blood in some places. His silvery blue sweatshirt was shredded at the back, deep cuts littered across it. He groaned again, this time filled with pain.

I edged closer and prodded him with a finger. He groaned, and his eyes opened. They were light blue, the color of the sky. I stared until he fixed his gaze on me.

He fell back, startled. "Who are you?"

My normal survival instincts urged me to lie. _Trust him, Max,_ the Voice piped up.

"Um, Max. Maximum Ride," I said. He didn't look evil enough to be an enemy.

"Well, I'm Jack Frost. Not the best place for introductions is it?" He chuckled, then winced.

"You okay?" I hunched forward. I slung my backpack off my shoulder, fumbling through it till I found the first aid kit.

Pulling out a bottle of antiseptic, which still, to me, was very bothering, I sprayed all the cuts on his back. He groaned.

"Now I am, thanks." He said. He gave me a weak smile.

"Well well," I heard a voice from the darkness say. "Fancy meeting you here, Maximum Ride," It sneered. "It" stepped out of the shadows.

"Pitch." I felt Jack say.

"You know him?" I turned to Jack. I turned back and narrowed my eyes on Pitch. "Seems like a great place to be meeting you, no?"

He laughed. My eyes narrowed to slits.

"You should be one to talk. Your family abandoned you." He sneered.

"So what? Why should you care?" I snarled back.

He frowned. I grinned in satisfaction. Jack put a hand on my shoulder.

"It's not a good idea to rile him up," he whispered in my ear.

"I've been in tons of situations like these. It's not a problem." I replied.

Chains dragged me out of the cell into another room. Pitch materialized. He uncoiled a whip from his hand.

"Let's see if you've got anything to say after I'm done with you," He hissed.

* * *

I couldn't feel any more. I'd probably been in that room for what, an hour? More?

I was thrown back into the cell, my clothes probably in tatters. My entire self hurt.

"Don't move," I heard a boy's voice call out. He seemed so far away. I felt a stinging sensation, then the pain ebbed slightly. I breathed out in a sigh.

"Didn't I say it wasn't a good idea?" He asked.

"Yeah, you're right, happy now?" I slowly got up into a sitting position. The moon was at its highest, seeing as though a ray shone through the window. I did a systems check. My wings were fine.

"You got a plan?" He asked.

"I always have a plan," I replied, then winced. It was what I'd always said to my flock.

My flock that was now gone.

Tears welled up in my eyes, and I brushed them away furiously. Maximum Ride did not cry.

I formed made a silent cut through the air. A thick cut ran down from the steel wall. I figured that if we broke it down, we'd be able to get out.

"Tomorrow, tomorrow we'll get out." I said quietly.

"Alright," Jack wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I tensed, then relaxed.

Hope put me to sleep.

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**Well, that took me a little while to write. Considering all this homework piled on top of me**

**One review will be enough to get me going for another chapter tomorrow!**

**Maximum Ride**


	5. Chapter 5: Escape

**Something interesting will happen...hehehehe :D Enjoy! I'm gradually working towards longer chapters.**

**Thanks for reviewing!**

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Chapter 5: Escape

Max POV

All right, so, summarizing over all the fact's I've learned so far.

Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, Santa Claus, Sandman, and Jack Frost (who, to me is by far the most realistic) are all real.

Sandman's power and being was taken over by Pitch Black, a dude who obviously doesn't cut himself enough, taking pride in cutting others.

And, that I cut the wall two times now.

I gathered up power for another cut. My power was slowly waning, due to the cuts on my back. I formed a line of energy and-

There was a screech of metal that Jack helped me contain within the space we were standing. Over this week, he helped me practice how to use my powers. The hole that I cut in the wall folded down. I darted out of the cell, Jack following closely behind.

He lifted the metal that was cut off with a gust of wind, and I sealed it up with fire.

It was only till we got out of our cell did Jack tell me where we were.

"This is one of Bunny's tunnels. The dirt's fallen off." He stated.

I concentrated and re-made the layer of dirt so it camouflaged where we'd come out of perfectly. I made moss grow just for effect.

A crunch. We ran towards the end of the tunnel that seemed brighter.

"How dare you escape my clutches! Get them!" I heard Pitch order behind me. I skid to a stop.

"Jack! Go! Get the rest of the Guardians!" I shouted. He hesitated.

"Go or we'll both lose it!" I shouted again. He took into the air and breezed down the left tunnel.

Assuming the right tunnel would take me somewhere else, I followed it down, taking a slightly slower pace to lead the nightmare creations down my tunnel.

I reached the "warren" as Jack called it. The walls were cover in moss, and there were stone egg guardians that seemed not to be activated. There were neither Easter eggs nor a bunny anywhere.

I stopped in the middle of the clearing. It was fairly large, so I figured I could fight here.

The first nightmare horse lunged at me. I countered it with a strong roundhouse kick to its neck. It whinnied and dissolved.

A trio of horses approached me. I blasted them with a stream of fire.

I jumped as another couple lunged at the place where I just was. I dropped a giant puddle of water on top of them, dissolving them immediately.

The next horses were more careful, since I landed in the puddle of water, and if they touched the water, they would dissolve into mud immediately.

I made a gust of wind hit them from behind, and they all fell in.

"Well done, Maximum Ride. I see you've bested my creations," Pitch said, creeping out from the shadow of the tunnel. "Let's see if you can best my latest ones!" He sent a wave of darkness flying at me.

My immediate reaction: flinch.

_Real smart, Max. Real smart,_ I thought. It washed over me, and I cast a layer of water over myself, preventing the black sand from getting to me.

The room was dark. I couldn't see anything. Fear began to creep onto me.

A scythe materialized from nowhere and cut me across the stomach. I cried in pain.

Another slice in my back, deeper than from the whips. My left arm, then my right, sustained large, deep gashes.

Next came the unexpected. A punch to my stomach, knocking the breath from me. A kick to my legs, sending me falling over in the darkness. I could almost feel myself falling non-stop.

I cried out again. Kicks and punches erupted all over me. Fear overcame my body, and I couldn't take control of myself in order to strike back.

For the first time in days, I wished my flock was here to help me.

3rd person POV

"North! Bunny! Tooth! Trouble at the Warren!" Jack shouted, flying into the North Pole. The trio stood looking at the globe, still littered with a couple hundred lights.

"Trouble at the Warren? My warren?" Bunny asked, incredulous.

"Yes! A girl! The Moon showed her to me! Pitch is fighting her right now!" Jack shouted.

"Let's move!" Santa looked to Bunny for confirmation. He tapped the ground twice. A tunnel opened up, and everyone dropped in.

They landed in a puddle of water. Max on the opposite side, surrounded by a shroud of darkness, as well as Pitch, standing over her, kicking her mercilessly.

Bunny threw his boomerang. It bounced off the shroud harmlessly.

"Oh, the Guardians? Were you looking for," He picked up Max by the back of her sweatshirt, "her?"

Jack let loose his pent up energy, striking Pitch in the face with a jet of blue lightning. Max groaned and her eyelids fluttered. She woke.

With a burst of fury that beat both Bunny's, Santa's and Jack's anger combined, she let loose a wave of fire.

The heat of the fire turned the surrounding shroud of sand into glimmering grains of glass.

"You may have won this battle, so have your last hurrah. My nightmares are at work right now." Pitch grinned, getting up from the force of Max's blow. He laughed and sank into the shadows.

"Aw, blimey, you really trashed this place, didn't you?" Bunny groaned. Max grinned weakly and collapsed. Tooth flew forward to catch her.

"She's the new guardian?" Tooth asked.

"Yep," Jack replied, popping the "p". He began to explain the whole story while they cleaned up the Warren.

"So all this time, this whole week, including Easter, you were with her? Captured by Pitch?" Bunny confirmed, incredulously.

Jack nodded as Max began to stir. Her eyelids opened. She stood up and looked around, taking in the faces of the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, and Santa.

She put her hands on her hips and rubbed her chin in thought. "So, these are the Guardians?"

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**So she meets the Guardians. Next chapter will have good explanations for people if they haven't watched the movie yet. Maybe...**

**Review or message me with pairings. If I don't have enough for a decision, I'll put up a poll**

**Thanks!**

**Maximum Ride**


	6. Chapter 6: Giving Dreams

**"This is gonna be...EPIC!" -North (Santa) in Rise of the Guardians**

**Yep, this is gonna be epic. As I said, i'm working towards making my chapters longer. So you don't have to wait as long, since it'll take you longer to read it. :D**

**Please review with pairings!**

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Chapter 6: Giving dreams

Third person POV

Max walked around the Guardians, sizing them up like she always did to her enemies if she had time. She winced now and then from her wounds, causing them (minus Bunny) to look at her in concern. Her eyes softened after a couple minutes.

"They're exactly like you told me," she turned to Jack, eyes glittering.

"I told you," he said, gesturing back at them.

"And Sandman…" she trailed off. Jack swallowed and nodded. Bunny's mood seemed to darken even more, and Tooth landed on the ground.

"Then we'll defeat him. Simple," She stated after a few moments of silence.

"You think it's that easy? You think the Man in the Moon would present us with you," Bunny gestured to Max, "and our frosty brat if we could take care of him on our own?"

Max fixed her gaze, now steely, on Bunny. Bunny met it with one not nearly as strong but as close as it came to one of her glares.

"I was chosen, and I know that. But you know what? If we were weak, would we be chosen? Would Pitch have cursed my family into hating me, abandoning, then dying? You think I'm happy to be here?" Her voice rose with every word. Bunny flinched under her gaze.

She shook her head quickly, gradually slowing into a grave shake. "It's my problem. I probably shouldn't bother you with it."

"Its okay, Max." Tooth put a hand on her shoulder. Max smiled weakly at her.

"You got any plans?" Jack asked Max.

"Oh, I always have a plan."

Max POV

"_Oh, I always have a plan,"_

Yeah, it was classic. But I did have a plan. Maximum Ride always has a plan.

"We know where his base is, so we can go to find him. How many kids still believe in you guys?" I asked.

"Roughly one thousand, judging by the lights on the globe. It's not a lot, considering they used to have pretty much a million kids knowing they're real," Jack replied.

_Oh, right. Jack's not one of them,_ I thought.

"Right now, without Sandy, our current main influence is Tooth, but she doesn't have as wide of a range," I stated. North nodded, and Bunny begrudgingly agreed.

"Then we find dream sand for dreams as our first plan of action." I finished. We all stood up and followed Bunny to a tunnel outside.

I used my earth powers to pick up sand by the bucketful. I handed one to each of the guardians.

"So supposedly, all we need to do sprinkle a stream of sand around the children's heads, right?" I asked.

"Seems that way, that's what Sandy's streams usually do, mate." Bunny replied.

"Maybe I can try. Just temporarily." I said. Jack nodded.

Santa led us to his sleigh. It was quite impressive; bright red paint, looked pretty aerodynamic, wings on either side, a globe in front, and pretty intimidating reindeer. I climbed in, Jack following me.

"North, would you mind if I-" Bunny began.

"Come on, everyone loves the sleigh! Get in," Santa grabbed Bunny and dropped him into the sleigh.

North snapped the reins against the sleigh and the reindeer began to run. We slid down into the icy tunnels. I heard Bunny groan from beside me, clawing the paint off the sides of the sleigh. Tooth was cheering in exhilaration. The sleigh steadily sped up, closer towards the light at the end of the slippery tunnel. Santa pulled a lever and the sleigh went up in a loop. I whooped and cheered.

"Everybody loves the sleigh!" North shouted.

The sleigh bumped against the docking, and it took off into the air. The reindeer climbed higher and higher, into the sky, and Bunny moaned again.

Jack was standing on the back end of the sleigh. I stood up and joined him. It occurred to me that it had been ages since I'd flown, not to mention being cooped up in Pitch's lair.

I stood up on the tips of my toes and let the wind carry me down.

Jack POV

I heard a cry from Max as she fell off the sleigh. I followed her down, the wind whooshing around me.

I watched as she spread her hazel and ivory wings, and the wind caught her. She soared upwards, almost crashing into me. I chased after her.

"Woo hoo!" Max shouted, flying up to the sleigh, taking a position right above it. Her wings blocked off some sunlight and cast a shadow over Bunny.

"Quit showing off," Bunny groaned. I laughed and rose up to Max's level.

"I love flying!" She shouted over the wind.

"I know right! It's amazing!" I shouted back.

"Wait up!" Santa threw a snow globe in front of the sleigh and all of us were sucked into it.

Max POV

I flew into the portal, spinning briefly, then regaining my balance. There were a million colored lights under us, shining from buildings, towers and billboards.

"Race you!" Santa called, stopping the sleigh while all of us got out. We climbed onto the roof of a building and took our positions, Santa being on top of a chimney.

"Oh, you really don't want to race a rabbit," Bunny whispered in my ear.

"Is that a challenge?" I replied, just as Santa said, "Go!"

I took off, flying at super speed, popping by in kid's houses to throw in a stream of sand. The sand levitated above their heads and shifted into a small, wonderful dream. I saw a figure about to tunnel out into one of the houses I was in. I put a puddle of water on top of it.

"Agh!" I heard Bunny's shout as I flew off to the next house.

We were going at such a fast pace that soon we'd gotten through China, Europe, and New York. We arrived at a small town called Burgess.

"Max, this is my hometown," Jack told me, gesturing to the little city under us as we flew.

"Seems pretty peaceful," I remarked.

"Yeah, I died and woke up here."

I chuckled. We slowed down and flew in to visit the kids.

"You know, I kinda think its unfair to the rest of us, since we need to be careful not to be seen, while you two are just plain invisible," Bunny complained.

"Quit being a sore loser, Bunny," I said, concentrating at the same time, carefully directing streams of sand outwards. My energy was sapping quickly. This job definitely wasn't mine; it was Sandman's.

Tooth and Jack caught all the sand I dropped into buckets as I dropped myself back onto the sleigh.

"So, Max, do you need a weapon?" Santa asked me.

"What do you mean?" I said, watching Tooth and the Yetis carry the buckets of sand to a storage place.

"Something to channel your powers into a more directed attack."

"Sure?"

"Bunny, here's your chance to repair your boomerang." Santa laughed. The moon shone on a icy and silvery "G" in the middle of one of the platforms in North's base. It slid to the side and revealed a staircase, leading down. We followed it down into the darkness until the suddenly flashed on. What I saw was absolutely amazing.

"Welcome to the Forge."

* * *

**Annnnd CLIFFHANGER! It's so interesting just to put one in the story you write, but you hate it when someone else does it. Don't worry, I'm on still updating on a daily basis. Shout outs for reviewers/favoriters/followers next chapter!**

**Ok, pairings: I'm drifting towards Jack/Max definitely, but I don't know what to do about Tooth. Put her with Bunny? Seems a bit weird. Hopefully Sandman will give me a dream that'll give me an idea of what pairing :D**

**Maximum Ride**


	7. Chapter 7: The Forge

**Shout out to:**

**Waffle-FlavoredPancakeIATD, FrostyNerd, DoctorWhotaaliaandtheOlympia ns (pretty long name :D) and Guest for reviewing!**

******DoctorWhotaaliaandtheOlympia ns and PseudonymHere for adding the story to their favorites!**

******Fantasy-Mania31, PseudonymHere, Susie3876 and ****Waffle-FlavoredPancakeIATD for following!**

**Time to see what the Forge looks like! Hope you enjoy! **

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Chapter 7: The Forge

Max POV

What I saw was amazing. There was a mixture of yetis, tooth fairies, and small rabbits everywhere. The faeries carried tiny buckets of glittery stuff, leaving a trail as they flew. The yetis were hammering away at their the glittery stuff dumped into a boiling pot on top of a burning hot furnace. The walls were traced in leafy designs, and at the center of the back wall, there was the symbol of the Guardians.

"I'm heading to the repair room," Bunny informed us, then hopped off. I continued staring, awed.

"Woah," Jack said beside me. I nodded in agreement.

"Snap out of it, kids. We've got work to do." North reminded us. He began walking. Jack and I followed him.

"Jack, if you want, we can infuse your staff with Dream metal," Santa looked to Jack.

"Well, as long as it doesn't change in any way. And if Pitch can't break it," He handed the staff to one of the yetis.

"That is guaranteed." North replied. "Wait there," North pointed to a couple of couches on one side. "Max, follow me."

I walked beside North as we walked down a hallway. "We're going to see if we can find a base that fits your style."

"A base?" I asked.

"Something that conducts your power." He replied. I thought about it for a while.

"I'm not sure anything would fit me too well. I've only used my own hands and on occasion, a knife. Very on occasion," I added.

"Well, let's see." North pushed open a heavy door. Inside was a wide array of weapons and armor. There was a wide, curved blade that was hollow on one side and had no handle.

"What's that?" I pointed to the blade.

"Ah, it's Tooth's classic base. It's a really light blade that fits on her wings. It's practically invisible, since her wings move so fast.

_Hah, wait till you see me fly at super speed,_ I laughed silently.

"You think I can get fitted with one of those? For my wings?" I asked.

"Sure. We shape it with dream metal. Usually Sandy is the one who bends it into shape. We have the yetis, and they do a decent job," Santa replied. "Now, you say you fight with your hands?" He showed me to a pair of gloves. Cloth on the palm was black, and there was metal edging on the knuckles and wrist part. It was fingerless.

"The cloth is thread woven by the faeries." He explained.

"Yeah, that'd be great." I replied. It looked pretty practical to me. "Can the cloth be more fiery silver-ish colored?" I asked.  
"Yeah, that can be arranged."

We headed back out, North calling for a yeti to take down the design carefully.

"Wait here with Jack. The weapons will be ready in about 15 minutes," North told me. I sat down beside Jack.

"Hey," He greeted.

"Hi to you too," I replied.  
"Can I ask you a question? Just out of curiosity," Jack asked.

"You just did, but sure, go ahead."

"Who was your family?"

I flinched. He put a hand on my shoulder. I turned to face him. He was practically the opposite of, well, Fang. He was openhearted, funny, showing all his emotions, yet, well, similar to "him" in the fact that they were both unpredictable.

I gazed steadily into his comfortingly sky blue eyes. I blinked and snapped out of it, blushing.

"Well, you know how I have wings, right?"

"Yeah?"

"They did to. We all came from a laboratory where we used to be tested on by the scientists who owned it. Then we escaped." I explained. "We've been through a lot of things together, and we've been running ever since. Then Pitch came and…" I trailed off. He looked at me in concern and put his arm around me. I relaxed into his gaze.

"Hey, lovebirds! Your weapons are ready, mate." Bunny hopped over, and I blushed again.

"Shut up," I said, punching him as I walked past.

"Hey, what was that for, mate?" He said, rubbing his arm.

"You know exactly what it was for, Easter Kangaroo," Jack replied, walking with me. I laughed quietly.

As we approached the table in the center, North explained to me what we had to do.

"It's simple. You touch it, and it brands your signature on it. For example, Jack's staff has always had a spreading layer of frost." North said, pointing to Jack's staff, now tinted with silver, a sparkling layer of frost over it.

I put my hands on my gloves, and they glowed momentarily. The backhand parts of the glove burst into flames. I slipped them on. They adjusted to my hands, and a leaf floated in midair over my left glove, while a droplet of water was over my right.

"That is waayy cool," Jack said, admiring my gloves.

I was in awe myself. I'd never seen anything like it.

And just at that moment, I heard Tooth's shout.

"We're under attack!"

We raced upstairs to see nightmare creatures everywhere, trailed with black sand. Tooth was flying back and forth, hacking and slicing at the creatures with her wings. I sprayed out a stream of fire from my palms. It was more direct and focus. The creatures that were caught in the spray froze and dissolving onto the ground in glass crystals.

I saw Pitch, flying on a carpet of sand.

"He must be here for his scythe. We took it a few days before we found you," Tooth explained. I flew upwards.

His scythe materialized, and my eyes widened. I blocked it with my hands. A clash of metal rang throughout the main lobby of the North Base.

I punched him in the gut. He coughed, breath leaving him, as he stumbled backwards. I spun and roundhouse kicked him in the chest. He coughed again.

I relentlessly attacked, like a tornado of kicks and punches. His breathing began to labor, and he dissolved, then reformed above me.

"This just keeps getting better and better," He chuckled, coughing between words. "Its invigorating. Your stubborn attitudes, refusing to give in. Do you still not realize that fear, is the most dominant emotion in the world?"

"Only among those who have no imagination, those who aren't prepared, mate," Bunny said, shaking his head.

"Oh, no. Everyone is scared to some point or another," He dodged ball of fire I sent and it went over his head. He narrowed his eyes at me.

A gigantic wave of darkness formed before me and came crashing down.

Third person POV

Max went down quickly. She was enveloped in a cloud of dust as she slammed into the ground.

"Max!" Jack shouted, preparing to run towards her. Pitch blocked it with a wall of sand. Jack ran into it, attacking. He passed through.

"Jack!" North shouted.

"Oh, don't even try, North," He spat his name as though it didn't deserve to be said. "You've had believers since the Dark ages. Don't you think it's my turn?" Pitch sent a wave flying towards North, Tooth and Bunny. Bunny, looking up from cutting a creature into pieces till it dissolved, gasped as the wave came closer.

A wall of air and fire blocked it, and the wave turned into crystals of glass.

"You've had your turn, Pitch. Now it's mine."

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**CLIFFHANGER! Who's that at the end? Max or Jack? Little bit of Mack (Max/Jack) while they were in the Forge. **

**Surprisingly, this chapter was longer in terms of words (I think) without the notes at the start and end, but the last chapter was longer with the notes. :O**

**Thanks for the reviews guys! Keep them coming!**

**Maximum Ride**


	8. Chapter 8: Confronting Battle

**If any of you guys checked earlier and didn't see an update, I'm sooo sorry! I had a Model United Nations conference today, and I have one tomorrow and the day after. I'll still update on the daily basis though.**

**Enjoy Chapter 8!**

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****Chapter 8: Confronting Battle

Third Person POV

"You've had your turn, Pitch. Now it's mine."

Max stepped out of the clearing cloud of dark sand, her arm slung around Jack, who was standing right beside her. They shared the exact same look of determination in their eyes.

"You think you can defeat me in that state? Look at you! You can barely walk by yourself, much less fight." Pitch laughed.

"I don't need to be able to fight you to stand up to you, Pitch. I've figured it out. You're just a coward," Max said. Pitch tried to interrupt, but was cut off. "You're the impersonation of fear, the essence of it. You're practically made of it."

"And so what? Fear is always in the world, and that means I will always exist." He replied.

"Fear is what makes people weak. Fear is what makes cowards in the world," Max continued. "I had a family, Pitch. A family that was perfect and happy and had everything. The Man in the Moon told you I was going to be chosen, didn't he? He signaled you. So what you did," Max paused, as if thinking, "Oh yes, was curse them. Fear has that effect on people. You gave them expiration dates with your 'oh so wonderful' fear, and they betrayed me. The left me to die." She stopped, breathing hard. Her eyes steeled. "Then you murdered me. You were the reason I lost my family. And now you want to kill my new family. My new home." She looked around, meeting the eyes of Jack, Tooth, Bunny and North. "It won't happen."

"And yet here you all, nearly falling over before me. What are you going to do, Maximum? What are you going to do?" He taunted, and Max's eyes narrowed into slits. She opened her mouth as though she were going to say something, then closed it. Her lips curved into a smile, and she laughed openly.

"Pitch Black, the question should be, what are you going to do?"

A huge tornado of fire materialized around Pitch, enveloping him in its red hot flames. **(I know, the hottest flames aren't red, but let's just keep it that way for now.) **

Pitch laughed and disappeared. He reappeared outside of the tornado. The tornado promptly disappeared.

His laughter was cut off when Max spoke again.

"Face it, Pitch. As long as you exist, we will. There is always something to counter fear. Whether its bravery, light, hope, happiness, or dreams. There always will be. As long as you exist, we exist too."

"You wish! I could just kill you," a sword materialized at Max's neck. "With the flick of my hand."

Nervous silence streaked into the room like lightning.

"Now hold it there, mate," Bunny stepped up. "You're expecting us to do as you say, because of one petty trick you pull?" Pitch's eyes narrowed as he summoned another wave of sand.

"Aw, rack it off, you showpony! You don't know nothing about battle! All you do is summon things to your command. Can you even fight yourself?" Bunny teased. Pitch released his wave, and it was frozen in midair by a streak of frost from Jack. He froze away the sword that was at Max's neck as well.

Bunny sent Max a glance, and she took the hint. Bunny leapt at Pitch's form in midair, and took a swing with his boomerang. It followed the shadow of Pitch that traveled around the room, attempting to avoid the attack. Jack threw icicles as Max hid herself behind a small wall.

"That all you got?" Bunny taunted, and Pitch lunged at him in a roar of fury. Bunny ducked and kicked him in the stomach.

Pitch disappeared and reappeared in the air.

"Oh, you guardians amuse me. However, our final battle won't be here. It'll be some place more...fun." He cackled, and dissolved.

"Max, did you get it on him?" Bunny asked, breathing hard from lunging at Pitch.

"Yep." She said, popping the 'p'.

"What did you get on him?" Tooth floated over and asked.

"A tracker. Bunny can track things that are made out of nature. I stuck a leaf on him. It's coated with a layer of water then a layer of fire, so he can't get it off or burn it." She explained.

"Good job. Let us have a rest, before we get to repairing the Pole." North said, and we nodded our agreement.

* * *

Max POV

I was exhausted. It was an intense fight, and I knew I could definitely do better. But my wounds were weighing me down.

I looked up at the globe that Jack was flying around near. The lights were going out rapidly. I knew that we had to act fast if we were still to defeat Pitch Black.

"The lights are going out. Pitch's tipped the scales." Jack stated unnecessarily. I gave him a look that said "you think I didn't know that?" and turned away.

Jack floated down to sit beside me. He threw an arm around me. "It'll be ok."

"Ugh, its just...it's so hard to believe. That I lost a whole family because I was chosen," I sighed.

I looked up into his eyes. "Does it get easier, talking about them?"

"Sometimes. I usually think back to the happy times I had. In fact, for me, they're all happy," He replied, smiling as though he could still see them now.

I took a deep breath. Sometimes it wasn't too well with me.

"Wanna go take a...erm...fly?" He asked me.

"Sure. Where do you want to go?" I asked.

"Somewhere cold? South pole? Antarctica?" He asked.

I thought back. It didn't seem too bad. The UD and his giant frankenwiener weren't after us this time, so i figured it'd be pretty safe.

He took off and I followed him.

* * *

I stood at the edge of the ocean, Jack at my side. I smiled to myself as the wind blew against me. It was always comforting, wind, the sound of the ocean. Flying.

"Enjoying the view?" I heard Pitch's voice. I whirled around, gloves ready.

"Don't get feisty now." He grinned. I narrowed my eyes.

"What do you want?" Jack hissed from beside me.

"Oh, I want you to join me." He shot a stream of sand at Jack. Jack sent it flying back onto the ground in an explosion of ice. It formed a spikey shape.

"See how wonderful it is, when we work together? Darkness and coldness, working perfectly together." Pitch sighed. "All this time, I didn't know there were others like me. Now i do. So now, will you join me? Together we can make the world-"

"Pitch Black. Yeah, I know. You have your own little plan and once you're done, you'll toss us away like trash. I know, Pitch. You won't fool me." I sneered. His eyes narrowed.

"Then I'll take care of that now." He waved his hand, and a shadow of black sand caught us off guard, tossing us into an icy crevasse as though we weighed nothing.

I had thought I could do something. But now, I wasn't sure if I could.

* * *

**A little bit of a cliffie there. Slight Max/Jack, too. A little bit taken from the actual movie to make it seem realistic. Max is really good at talking!**

**Reviews! Reviews reviews reviews! I feel so accomplished!**

**Thankyouthankyouthankyouthan kyou!**

**Maximum Ride**


	9. Chapter 9: Deep Regrets

**Dun dun dun dunn! Chapter 9! Just had another day of my Model UN conference. I have another day tomorrow, too.**

**GOOOO MAAAX!**

**Enjoy!**

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Chapter 9: Deep regrets

Max POV

I sat in the bottom of the crevasse, thinking. Jack was passed out beside me. I sat doing my deep thinking.

First things first; I couldn't fly out, it was too narrow. I couldn't use air to carry me because I still needed more practice on it.

I thought back to my flock. What if they weren't dead? What if they were actually still out there somewhere, waiting for me? Or maybe happy that I was gone?

The thought of them being alive was like a miracle to me. Too bad I was stuck in a crevasse exactly like the one Angel was stuck in before.

Jack stirred beside me. I shook him awake and yawned. I wanted to sleep so bad.

_No, Max. Sleep means death here._

"Can you get us out?" I asked Jack. He nodded. He waved his arms and a gust of wind blew us up from in the crevasse. Clearly Pitch had underestimated him.

I continued thinking. Why hadn't I noticed how weird they were acting? On that last day, Fang asking me to buy something. He never did that. Angel not responding to my thoughts. That just never happened.

I looked up at the moon and silently begged for answers, begged for it to give me some sign that I didn't do anything wrong. Of course, it never came.

I sighed. Jack flew over and rested his hand on my shoulder. I looked at him in comfort. I thought back to Fang. He'd rejected me. He was one of the first to leave me.

I regretted never realizing the obvious facts. But this was my new life now.

And it was then that Jack reached over and pressed his lips to mine.

We stopped flying and just hovered in midair together. He wasn't demanding like Fang. He was relaxed, happy, fun, and trustworthy. I trusted him now more than I would ever trust Fang anymore.

We pulled apart, and he gave me a dazzling smile. I wrapped my arms around him.

Peaceful moments like these didn't come often anymore.

* * *

"We have to do something. The lights are going out. By tomorrow, we'll have less than one hundred." North commented.

"Max doesn't have nearly enough energy currently to control the Dream Sand. Tooth and Bunny, can you collect teeth? North, Max and I will discuss our plan of action," Jack replied.

"Will do, mate," Bunny created a tunnel and whooshed away.

"I have no idea what to do. Usually, I take out the enemy where they stand. But Pitch is "magical" compared to what i've faced before," I stated. Jack nodded, as if in understanding.

"So, what to do?" Jack asked.

I gave it some thought. Where was Pitch? Somewhere under a bed in Burgess, as Jack had told me.

"His base. Let's rescue the faeries. And if that won't work, we'll have to have a face off."

* * *

**Please do not kill me for making this chapter so short...It's around 11 here in China so I have to go to sleep...I've got speeches to write. Max/Jack in this chapter. Ah, young love. Well, both Jack and Max are older than me. Better enjoy my last year of middle school while I can!**

**Wait until the weekdays come along. I'll get more in then. Much more. The battle's coming up, but there is a twist. A very, very big twist. **

**Maximum Ride**


	10. Chapter 10: Belief

**Again, apology for the short chapter. I'm just keeping this up so the storyline keeps moving. Thanks for reviewing!**

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Chapter 10: Belief

Max POV

I followed Jack under the branches of the trees into a thicket that covered a broken bed. Under it was a deep hole.

"Oh, well that's the place I fell into the first time," I whispered. Jack grinned and jumped down. I followed him.

We arrived into seemingly the lobby of Pitch's base. There were cages filled with faeries. They began to stir at our presence.

"Shhh, stay quiet, or we'll be found out." Jack hissed. The faeries went silent.

I carefully unlatched each of the cages. The faeries shook their heads.

"What? None of you can fly?" Jack asked.

I pointed towards the globe silently. The lights were going out.

There were only 6 left.

I cast Jack a glance and he nodded. There wasn't enough time.

We flew to the globe and watched it closely.

Third person POV

Black sand covered the globe. Pitch materialized with it as the globe cleared with an explosion of sand.

"You're all free to go! There won't be any Christmas anymore, nor, ever again. Thank you," He bowed. He stood back up with an evil grin plastered to his face. He danced across the globe; stepping on lights, until one last one refused to go out.

"One, one last believer. You are lucky, guardians. For this one last child is your only thread to survival. But don't worry, I have plenty of plans." Pitch cackled and disappeared with another explosion of sand.

Max POV

We glided into the small town of Burgess again, in search of the final child.

I stayed behind while Jack peered into the window of a boy who was talking to his bunny stuffed animal.

I caught snips of his words, like "believed…owe…sign..." and so forth.

Jack pushed open the window and walked in. He frosted the window and made a snow rabbit come out of its image upon the window. I heard laughter.

I had that before. Now I didn't.

I had a different duty now.

More laughter. Jack's shouts. At the fact that one boy believed in him.

I couldn't help but feel happy for him too.

I didn't need anyone to believe in me to know I was real. I knew so, and it was imprinted in my mind forever. I was a special case. People still saw me, so i stood out of sight. On the roof behind the chimney.

Jack flying out as a sleigh came crashing to a stop in front of the house.

Time for a little bit of debriefing.

* * *

**Annnd end. Next chapter will involve someone coming back! I know everyone can probably guess who it is.**

**Review!**

**Maximum Ride**


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